


Anywhere is paradise (as long as I'm with you)

by littlecountrymouse



Category: Animal Kingdom (TV)
Genre: Fluff, It's basically just fluff folks, M/M, With a side order of porn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-15
Updated: 2018-09-15
Packaged: 2019-07-12 11:53:02
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,289
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15994640
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/littlecountrymouse/pseuds/littlecountrymouse
Summary: Deran may have become a changed man, but he's still crap at communicating. It's up to Adrian to take the leap to actuallytalkabout houses before Deran moves them into something like Smurf's - huge, fancy, but with not an ounce of love in the whole place.He isn't looking forward to it.





	Anywhere is paradise (as long as I'm with you)

**Author's Note:**

> Hi everyone! So I tumbled down the rabbithole of Animal Kingdom, and here we are. This is my first work in this fandom, and my first completed work in any fandom in about 2 years, so let's hope you like this 6k monstrosity that came about because I wanted fluff and these two actually talking, and also I'm pretty sure the show missed about three episodes worth of important shit. 
> 
> Thank you so very much to Iresposts and allthehearteyes for your continued handholding and cheerleading of this panicked idiot, and your excellent editing skills. Also thanks to Quire and Hazel Athena, who aren't even IN this fandom, but still poked me in the right direction of actually completing it instead of letting it fall into the pile of unfinished things I've got going on.
> 
> Love you all, and if you like this, well, there's at least a dozen more works where this came from ... Come hit me up at dixiethumbelina.tumblr.com if you want to chat about these two, given that I'm currently obsessed.

***

It’s still a bit surreal for Adrian - and not just the way Deran turned from being an obnoxious brat in public to a sweet, desperate-to-please guy in private as a kid, to a wannabe gangster asshole, and then back to being the sweetheart Adrian remembered. Now, he’s a sweetheart in public too, if a bit of an awkward one. 

This time around, Deran seems determined to … Adrian isn’t exactly sure what he’s trying to do, actually, because the guy can be about as communicative as a chair, but he’s very determined to do it. There’s the cooking thing, which was unexpected but very appreciated. The Deran Adrian remembers could barely cook to save his life. He guesses moving out for good convinced him a diet of pot, beer, sandwiches and takeout probably wasn’t for the best. The sex has improved as well, and it was pretty fucking incredible before.

The affection in public, around his goddamn _mother,_ is out of the realms of even Adrian’s dreams. The last disturbing “family” dinner had ended with her catching them going at it in the bathroom, and when Smurf walked in all Deran had done was turn pink from his ears to his bellybutton. But he hadn’t hidden, hadn’t gotten violent, he’d even stood between Smurf and Adrian, fists clenched at his sides like he was just daring her to say anything.

Adrian didn’t think he’d stopped grinning for two days afterwards. 

He just hopes it’s not still about what happened before. The words ‘I’m sorry’ may not have crossed his lips much, but Adrian strongly suspects that of the amazing things Deran keeps doing for him every day, at least some of them are wordless apologies for last time.

And now he’s sprung it on him that he wants to get a house together. Not to his face, of course. The potential emotions involved with that might be a step too far for Deran at the moment. 

No, he’d just started looking at houses online, tricked Adrian into coming with him to viewings, and then when he still hadn't asked like, you know, a normal person, Adrian had just plain out asked.

Deran had managed to look such a weird mix of baffled and terrified that Adrian was surprised he'd kept himself from laughing and scaring the poor guy any more than he already had by figuring out what he'd been nervously trying to do. As though after all they've gotten through, Deran actually saying that he wanted to move things forward would be the thing to scare Adrian away for good.

Deran could be a bit of an idiot sometimes. Adrian wouldn't turn down living with him for anything in the world, let alone be upset at him for asking. They're better than they've ever been before - the bar was set a bit low admittedly, but they're in love, they're in something resembling a normal relationship and they get along like a house on fire. Why not move in together?

Besides, it’s not like either of them are well-set for accommodation - for two months they’ve been splitting nights between Deran’s shitty bar and Adrian’s slightly more civilized shared shitty house, and neither option is going to last much longer.

But Jesus, the _places_ Deran’s looking at. The price tags are more than anything Adrian is ever going to earn unless his surfing career takes off, which is very unlikely since he pulled the pin on the QS. Given that his budget towards a house is at most a hundred grand, it makes him feel sick to think of how much Deran is apparently able to pay in cash. He doesn't even know how much Deran _has,_. and he can't bring himself to ask. He's seen Smurf’s smug face whenever money or the houses is brought up, sure that Adrian is just with Deran for the money he's gotten. 

Adrian doesn't know how they'll break it to her that he and Deran have been in love since they were fifteen, and Deran might have had a lot of toys most of their lives but he hasn't exactly been flush with cash that doesn’t have strings attached to it.

But Smurf’s opinion of him really isn’t the issue here, she’s never mattered to Adrian as more than the woman trying to control Deran. It’s more the fact that just because Deran has that cash to spend, doesn't mean Adrian wants to spend it on a house. He'd rather get something small and comfortable, save the rest of the cash, maybe go on a few trips, instead of spending it all on a house that they really don’t need. 

Apparently there is a bit of a difference of opinion of what they need to be looking at, though. In Adrian’s opinion, they do not, under any circumstances, need to spend so much on a house, and he’s got no idea why he’s looking at places with four fucking bedrooms. Okay, there’s always the chance they’ll end up with Craig living with them. Deran has business shit to deal with and Adrian is back at school, so they’ll need something they can use as an office. But at the end of the day, it’s just them. They don’t have a lot of friends wanting to crash, they spend half their lives at their workplaces either together or alone, and when they aren’t they’re curled up on a couch or at any beach they can get to. Really, a two-bedroom place is all they need at the most, if not just a large living room. Anything else will just be empty space.

Adrian really can’t think of much worse than a place that looks like Smurf’s - huge and full of expensive shit, but with not a scrap of real love in the whole house.

He stares at the text for a moment, wondering how to tell Deran that he’s happy with something considerably cheaper. Yeah, the idea of being right near the beach is awesome, he’s not gonna lie. But Adrian can do without it, and the house itself really doesn’t matter as long as it’s his and Deran’s home.

So he finally bit the bullet today and started searching online during his breaks, in the hopes there will be something that’ll make him feel less nauseous. 

Nothing's cheap within walking distance of the beach, he knows that, so he's not expecting miracles price-wise. But there's some he really likes that are manageable – places with enough room to park both vehicles and store everything they've collected over the years, something new enough that it isn't a piece of shit, but not fancy. Some may not be right on the water, but they're houses he can get a decent amount of cash together for, and be something resembling an equal partner in.

He just has to figure out how to tell Deran without him freaking out that he's done the wrong thing - for a man who acts like he's ten feet tall and bulletproof, Deran is relatively timid when it comes to some of the newer points of being in an actual relationship, as opposed to fuckbuddies or a relationship played out solely behind closed doors. One ill thought out comment could have him panicking again like Craig's told him he's done a dozen times since they got back together.

After typing something out four times just to delete it, Adrian decides to just say he's busy and will look at it tonight at the bar with Deran, then he stuffs it back in his pocket. He's got so many boards to do that his phone is quickly forgotten about, and soon Adrian just hopes he'll make it to the bar before midnight.

*****

The bar’s packed when Adrian arrives, which gives him a chance to escape to the office for a moment with a quick wave and a smile in Deran's direction. He’s exhausted, his feet feel raw and so swollen it’s like they've outgrown his skin, and he just plain doesn’t think he can handle the sheer amount of people out there right now. Apparently all the social media promotion and a sign are doing wonders for business. 

He feels bad that by default that means he’s leaving Deran alone out there with only Craig for help until Heather comes on shift, but he knows he won’t be long. It seems that where Adrian is these days, Deran tends to orbit around him, soon to appear wherever he is.

Adrian’s right - he dozes for maybe ten, fifteen minutes on the couch with his head buried under a pillow to muffle the noise spilling through the door before Deran crashes in through the door, closes it again and leans into it with a soft thud. It sounds like he's trying to hold off zombies and not just his patrons. “Jesus. What idiot decided I needed to promote this place again?”

Adrian snorts from under the pillow. “And if there was room for more people you’d be freaking out that it’s gonna fold.”

The couch sinks under their combined weight when Deran lands heavily beside him, fingernails scraping softly from his nape down to the small of his back and back again until his skin’s popping out in goosebumps. “Hey, at least if it did I’d have more time to surf again. I think the only water I’ve touched this week has been in the sink.”

He sounds so worn out that it manages to make Adrian even more exhausted. “I think we need a weekend off.” 

“I can’t pull one at the moment, but I was thinking we might head somewhere, maybe in a month or so?” Deran sounds weirdly hesitant, but Adrian can’t get his brain to work well enough to figure out why. But he hasn’t pulled away, hasn’t stopped trailing his fingertips up and down Adrian’s back in long, steady lines. 

“Sounds good.” Adrian means it. A new Belize - except this time it’ll be just them with no Smurf stormcloud hanging over their heads waiting to drown them. No more hiding, a bit more cash between them. Regardless of where they go, it sounds like paradise to Adrian. 

“Yeah.” Deran's quiet for a moment, fingers tapping against Adrian’s shoulder blade. “Look, have I done something wrong? With the houses? You don’t seem very into it.”

Ah, fuck. Let nobody say Deran Cody wasn’t a perceptive guy when it came to some stuff, even if he didn’t know how to say it. Adrian groans and rolls over, his head landing on the pillow while he squints at Deran’s face. He’s pink from his forehead to his collarbones, tired blue eyes huge and shining in the dim light. Adrian sighs and tugs at his shirt. “C’mere. You didn’t do anything wrong, it’s alright.”

Deran comes into his arms easily, head dropping down onto his chest and sighing contentedly when Adrian wraps his arms around him. That’s good - Adrian’s pretty sure the easy mood from before is salvageable, as long as he doesn’t let his mouth ruin it.

“I just think, maybe, we should look at places that are a bit … smaller, maybe? Cheaper for sure. I’ve been thinking about it for a couple of days, and I found some I think might work, but we just haven’t had the time to talk.” 

Deran nods and curls in closer, legs still hanging off the side of the couch. He seems content enough to leave it at that, but Adrian thinks there’s probably more they need to talk about. 

“Babe, do you actually want a house that looks like that?” He tries to get a view of Deran’s face, but he’s pretty firmly tucked into Adrian’s shirt, almost like he’s trying to burrow through to the skin. “C’mon.” He tugs at Deran’s hair, mostly to get his head up a little bit, but also because he knows it’ll make Deran shiver against him.

“Stop that, unless you want me humping your leg.” It’s muffled, but there’s a smile in his voice. 

“But I like it when you do that. No, come on, look at me.” This time all it takes is him stroking under Deran’s chin and a gentle little push for Deran to blink up at him, looking exhausted and incredibly young. If his hair was longer and there was less scruff on his face, Adrian would swear he was staring at the guy he fell in love with ten years ago.

“What do _you_. want? Because I really don't care where we are, as long as I'm with you, you know? Just …” Adrian wonders how to put it, annoyed that he'd planned the conversation in his head a dozen times and it still won't go right. “I’m good with basic. Some creature comforts are good, a shower is a necessity. I don’t really need much else.”

Deran props himself up slightly until he’s leaning over Adrian a little, one hand working out from between them to worm its way under Adrian’s back. It’s hard to miss how he’s still managed to keep his head down enough that he doesn’t actually have to look Adrian in the eye, but he’s used to that.

“I just …” He sighs, and it echoes around the room. “I just wanted to make it something good for you. You deserve better than some shithole.” 

“Oh, I don’t know … a shithole with a bed and shower and you? I’d be more than happy with that.” It's already far more than Adrian ever dreamed he'd get, and to ask for more seems greedy when he's already so content.

“Yeah?” That gets Deran staring back at him,

“Mmm-hmm.” Adrian tugs him in tighter and presses a chaste kiss to the top of his head. “I'll live wherever you are, as long as there's something resembling a shower and a bed.” 

Deran nearly headbutts him as he rears up in a rush, his fingers digging into Adrian’s skin like he can’t bear the thought of being separated from him, nuzzling gently at him before leaning in for a quick kiss. “I love you, you know that? I don't say it enough, but I do.”

Adrian feels the grin split his face wide. He can’t help it, he does every time Deran says it. “Yeah. I love you too. But that can’t be comfortable.” He barely gets it out before Deran lets his arm give out, and he flops heavily onto his chest with a grunt.

“Sorry.” Deran really doesn’t sound like he is, but the giddy happiness in his voice is the best thing Adrian has heard all week. 

“Such a liar.” 

“Well, there's not a lot of room here.” Deran can’t seem to keep the amusement out of his voice as he rolls onto his side, at serious risk of falling off the couch in a heap, but he’s smiling like a fool.

Adrian groans half-heartedly and stretches, considering what he should say to that. He goes with the simplest option - he gestures at his lap and bucks his hips up, smirking at Deran.

Deran snorts, twitching sideways before grabbing onto the fabric of the couch to stop himself landing on his ass. “How did I nearly forget how much of a shit you are?”

“No idea. I’d move, but my feet are killing me. I didn’t get to stop all day, there’s more boards than I’ve ever seen at the shop.” Everything from his mid-calves down throbs with every heartbeat, his shoes feeling too tight but Adrian’s too content to kick them off, lest anything he does threatens the good vibe they’ve got going on.

“I can help, if you want?” Deran sounds so hesitant asking. Adrian wouldn’t turn down anything from him, but after a day in the shop, he’s pretty sure he’ll turn Deran off the idea of ever being near his feet again if he lets him touch them at the moment.

“I wouldn’t do that to you. My nose is full of resin and fibreglass, and I can still tell I stink.” 

He ends up with a lapful of Deran in the space of two seconds, knees against his sides and head dropped down to nuzzle in under Adrian's ear. The hot breath blowing over his skin is enough to have him gasping and clutching at Deran’s clothes, at the warm skin where his shirt’s riding up.

“I dunno. You smell pretty good to me.” The husky whisper makes Adrian shudder and work his hand up to wrap his fingers around strands of Deran’s hair and _tug,_ until Deran’s bowed back and he’s trembling and hard against him, a wobbly groan sounding like it’s been ripped from him and it gets Adrian shifting. He doesn’t really mean to thrust up, he mostly just wants to settle Deran’s weight more evenly, but Deran rolls his hips down with a whine and pants like he’s just ran a mile.

“Are we really gonna do this?” Adrian is all for it and his dick is already _very_ interested in the direction they’re heading, but they’re both too tired to even get their clothes off before they start.

“Since when do either of us turn down sex?” Deran’s enthusiasm is tempered by sheer exhaustion, his movements nowhere near as strong as they were a few seconds ago, but he shows no signs of stopping.

“Since we both got real jobs - ah, _fuck,_ Deran!” Adrian jerks unsteadily under Deran when he gets a hold of his nipple and twists viciously. Fuck him for knowing all of Adrian’s sweet spots, for knowing how to get him going from zero to one hundred so fast when before he was too tired to think straight. But hey - if they're going to get off like a couple of teenagers, Adrian's going to give as good as he gets.

Deran barely gets a chance to laugh before he’s whimpering as Adrian returns the favor by scraping his nails over the sensitive skin on Deran’s chest. Normally, he’d spend some time there, just to watch Deran squirm and grumble, but this time he barely pauses on his way down to his hips. He holds on tight enough to bruise and pulls Deran down against him harder, tightens his grip in his hair and holds him in position while Adrian thrusts up and grinds against him. It's not often Deran lets him do this, lets himself even simulate giving his control up, but if he's in the right mood, it'll get him closer than anything else.

It works this time - Deran is soon trembling and gasping like he’s drowning, flushed and sweating and _gorgeous,_ the exhaustion quickly drowned out by the desperate desire to get off. Adrian estimates maybe a minute or so before they're both coming in their pants, like they haven't done since Belize.

“Gotta - ahhaaaahh ....” Deran loses track of whatever it is he was going to say when Adrian hauls him down so he suck a biting bruise under his jaw, loving that now he can leave them where anybody can see them, that people will know that Deran is his and he’s Deran’s in return. 

“What was that?” 

Deran still doesn't slow, even though his eyes are closed, the lack of sleep showing under them in dark bruises nearly to his cheekbones, and Adrian follows his lead, his tired body aching beautifully when he thrusts up again. “Gotta go back to work, ohhh _shit_ \- fuck.”

Adrian shrugs as best he can with one hundred forty pounds or so of muscle on top of him. “Then we better hurry up.” He tugs at his hair again just to listen to Deran moan for him, twists his head so they can tumble into a rough kiss.

Hurried is exactly what Adrian would call it - the pace lifts until it’s nearly frantic and he gets why, but he wishes he could slow it down a little, really appreciate who he's got in his lap. He gets so few chances to watch Deran like this that Adrian kind of wants to savor what he can, watch him while he’s hungry and desperate and shaking, but still so focused on Adrian, like there’s nowhere else he wants to be, nobody else he wants to be with.

It’s a hell of a drug, to have the laser focus of Deran Cody staring down at you. One last look into those bright blue eyes is all it takes for Adrian, and he’s arching up with a yowl that can probably be heard over the music in the bar, then sobbing quietly when Deran keeps relentlessly grinding against him. 

He still won’t push him away - it’s worth a bit of discomfort to watch Deran move like his own personal porn show, sinuous and strong, one hand pressed against the bulge in his jeans while he groans something that sounds like it could be Adrian’s name.

When he finishes, he turns into a lump of fucking lead, slumped back down onto Adrian’s chest with his nose pressed firmly under his jaw and their hearts thudding like slightly out-of-time jackhammers.

It takes a few minutes before either of them are able to do anything more than gasp like fish out of water and cling to one another, unwilling to relinquish even the slightest hold - even if Deran’s legs have to be numb, and Adrian thinks the combined heat of the two of them is going to make him spontaneously combust. Even the rapidly cooling sweat isn’t doing anything to make him more comfortable, and he wonders if he could maybe get Deran to shift, just a little bit, just to give Adrian some access to fresh air.

It’s unlikely - he’s only recently been able to find out that Deran Cody is a goddamned octopus when he’s comfortable, and tonight is no exception. Adrian only tries once to shift his head to a better spot, one where he can both breathe and kiss Deran, but ends up dragged right back where he started with Deran hidden against him, and apparently gaining an extra arm to pin him to the couch.

“Stay.” It’s a throaty growl that would be threatening if not for the fact that Deran’s still shivering every few seconds, apparently just as overwhelmed as Adrian is by something so simple as getting off in their pants in the back room of a bar.

All he can do in response is snort faintly. “Man, I’m not moving any time soon. I think I’ve melted.”

They get lost for a while in the dull noise of the bar and each other’s ragged breathing, until Deran’s has settled enough that the exhaustion hits again and he yawns into Adrian’s neck. 

Adrian’s own tiredness is knocking at the back of his head, it’s demands for sleep getting louder. He thinks for a moment about everything they have to do tonight - closing the bar, cleaning it up a little for tomorrow, then seeing as they’ve both made a mess of themselves, Adrian is going to be a demanding bitch and drag them both to his house for a shower and a night in an actual bed. If he doesn’t get them up soon, there’s going to be so much to do later it might actually kill him.

But Deran has apparently moved from blissed-out to dozing within seconds, snuffling against Adrian’s skin, and he’s not sure he has the heart to make him get up just yet. “C’mon, don’t fall asleep there. Your legs will never forgive you.” He manages to move one hand by making sure never to lose contact with Deran, skating it down his side until he gets to his thigh and can push at it gently. “At least lie down like a normal person.”

Deran grumbles quietly but is surprisingly cooperative, only wincing a little as he gets one leg settled between Adrian’s and the other draped over his thigh and half off the couch. Adrian notices that somewhere along the lines his shoes have come off - he’s got no idea when that happened, and thinks he probably should have removed his own if only because his feet are reminding him that they’ve been turned into blocks of misery. But he wraps himself tightly around Deran anyway, kisses the top of his head and pulls him even closer while Deran sighs contentedly.

Yeah. This is pretty awesome. Discomfort and exhaustion and the fact that Adrian isn’t sure what’s going on with the house-searching aside, there’s nowhere else he wants to be, and he gives in to the urge to just sleep here for a while until someone comes looking for them. The next time Deran shivers, Adrian wakes himself up enough to tug the thin blanket off the back of the couch and drape it over as much of Deran as he can manage one-handed - he might be half-roasted, but Deran tends to run cold.

He feels the rumble of Deran murmuring into his neck, but can’t make out a single word. “What was that?”

Deran lifts his head half an inch to whisper into his ear, his voice husky and worn. “You’re too good to me.”

“Eh, only sometimes.” Adrian presses a smiling kiss to whatever part of Deran he can reach - in this case, he thinks it’s his temple. He’s not willing to open his eyes to check. “And you’re pretty awesome yourself.”

Deran nuzzles behind his ear, more loving than trying for round two. “Yeah?” 

“Yeah.” Adrian likes this, likes being able to give Deran the approval he’s been trying to get his whole life. “You’re really good at this, now. You’re doing really well, with the bar, your family … me. It’s like we’re back there all the time.” 

“Belize?”

“Mmhmm.” He strokes Deran’s hair back from where it’s tickling his face, then gets lost for a moment carding his fingers through it over and over. As short as it is, it feels weird, but in the best way - another new thing for him to explore that he’s never gotten a chance to do before. 

“We should go back there sometime.” 

“We should.” Although Adrian isn’t sure if he can go back there, in case something happens to taint one of the best memories he could ever have. Belize was something almost perfect in its simplicity. He’s pretty sure they can find somewhere else to go, though. Somewhere new to make a memory.

Deran hums, the noise vibrating against Adrian’s skin and making it feel like the purr of an overgrown housecat. Come to think of it, that’s kind of what Deran is these days - a partially tamed ex-feral, still with the capacity to rip you to pieces but considerably more happy living on the bed. 

He’ll keep that description to himself, he thinks. Half-tamed Deran may be, but telling him that is likely to end with bloodshed.

There’s a peaceful quiet in the room for a while, Adrian dozing while he suspects Deran is thinking about something, his body just a touch too tense for him to be asleep, but not enough that Adrian’s worried. 

“Have you picked any places?”

Adrian jerks awake with a muffled curse when Deran speaks, only catching half of it. “Shit. Sorry, I think I fell asleep. What did you say?”

Deran chuckles, fingers of one hand stroking down Adrian’s oversensitive ribs just to make him twitch. “Houses. Did you find any you liked?”

“Uh, yeah, I did.” Adrian makes an attempt to sit up and grab his phone, but his liquid human blanket makes no attempt to make things easier for him. “If you move, I can show you?”

“Nah. I've gotta close, and you need some sleep. Show me after, yeah?” Deran sits up, loose-limbed and sleepy-eyed, trying to dredge up the energy to stand. Adrian doesn’t help by running the fingertips of one hand over every part of him he can reach, but he can’t make himself stop.

“We're going back to mine tonight, and we're having a shower.” Adrian doesn't leave room for an argument there – he thinks they’re both old enough to actually shower every night where possible.  
“Ugh. Fussy.” But Deran is still smiling when he leans down to kiss him before he drags himself upright and glares around the dimly lit room. “Where the hell did I leave those shorts I had on yesterday?”

Adrian waves vaguely towards the desk. “I think you threw them over there this morning.” He considers falling asleep like he is, then decides it isn't worth it and pulls himself up. He's pretty sure he has some questionably clean pants here, but he's also sure they're in the crawl space. Best to grab them now while he can still function enough to put them on.

By the time he's gotten vertical, Deran is dressed again and on his way out the door, managing to press a kiss to Adrian's cheek and a wet wipe into his hand as he goes past. “Get some sleep, I'll come get you when I close up.”

“Don't take too long.” Adrian wiggles out of his clothes and throws them towards the door in a vague reminder to bring them home for a wash, wipes down, then heads for the ladder. 

He’s greatly amused by the sharp inhale at his side, because Deran might be insanely focused on his bar, but when it comes down to it, Adrian thinks he could make him walk straight into traffic as long as Adrian stripped off and went in front of him.

Deran's groan is heartfelt. “Oh, fuck you.” 

It's only Deran's possessiveness that makes him wait until Adrian's naked ass is up the ladder before he leaves the office and slams the door behind him, and Adrian can only blame how tired he is for the fact that his brain doesn't figure out what actually happened until Deran is well and truly on the other side of the bar.

When he does, Adrian laughs until he trips over his pants leg and nearly goes headfirst down the ladder, but he does manage to navigate back down it again without requiring a trip to Urgent Care.

He gets to the couch without too much difficulty, and just manages dragging the blanket halfway up his chest and getting his head vaguely onto the pillow before he’s out like a light. 

***  
He wakes up to Deran kissing his forehead and Adrian can’t help but lean up to hug him for a moment. Deran returns it easily, his shirt damp and stinking of beer and his skin tacky with sweat where he’s pressed against Adrian until he pulls away.

“Hey, sleepyhead. You wanna stay there, or are we going back to your place?”

Adrian stretches out, winces when he hits his sore feet against the end of the couch, and tries to make his exhaustion-drunk brain function long enough to answer. “My place.” 

“Alright, well, come on then.” Deran offers him an appreciated hand up, then looks like he’s going to attempt holding Adrian steady for a moment until he glares at him. He’s not quite that fucked up yet, thanks. “You might be better off waiting for that shower.”

“Shut up, man, I’m not that bad.” Adrian decides it’d be best if he ignores how he can hardly keep his eyes open - so much for a nap improving things, he thinks he’d have been better off staying awake. 

Deran snorts. “Yeah, right. Well, you fall asleep in there, it’s your fault if you crack your skull open.”

He’s pretty sure that’s bullshit, given that he hasn’t had a shower in three weeks without Deran joining him. “You’d never let me, dude. You love this pretty face too much.”

“Shut up.” It’s shy and half-hearted at best, and Adrian smiles into Deran’s arm where it’s slung around his shoulders, his other hand low on his hip and his eyes focused more on making sure Adrian doesn’t fall than whether or not Deran is going to run into the doorframe on his way out. 

Yeah, right, like he’d let him so much as bruise himself, but if Deran wants to play like he isn’t totally fucking gone on him, Adrian isn’t going to ruin his illusion. 

“C’mon. Let’s go clean up and get some sleep.”

***

The drive home and showering are a blur, Adrian barely remembering how they got from the bar to the bathroom, let alone into bed.

He does remember a warm, wet Deran in his arms, though, slippery with soap and smiling at him like he’d hung the moon. He remembers tumbling into bed together, too tired to do more than curl up in each other’s arms and share a lazy, toothpaste-scented kiss before they both passed out.

Now it’s 10am and Adrian still feels like he’s been hit by a bus, but he’s spent the last fifteen minutes staring at Deran bonelessly flopped over him with his head cushioned on Adrian’s chest, still so amazed that they can do this now. That he doesn’t have to worry about being caught, even in his own bed, that Deran isn’t going to pretend that he cares if he wakes up and finds out that Adrian’s been lying there watching him sleep. 

He cards his fingers through Deran’s hair, afraid to wake him but not able to stop himself. Now it’s been cut, it’s ridiculously soft when it’s clean and the texture of it is addictive. At first, he’d missed the long blonde hair Deran had worn for most of his life, but now that he’s used to it, Adrian kind of hopes he keeps it short.

He gets lost in it for God only knows how long, getting bold enough to trail his fingertips down Deran's fuzzy cheek, past his ear and back into his hair again, over and over.

It's only when Deran wakes up in a rush like always, with one sucked in breath and his eyes blinking open, that Adrian figures out he's been staring at him for at least half an hour. He also doesn't stop once he's been caught.

“Hi.”

Adrian smiles down at him, Deran's eyes nearly glowing in the sunlight streaming through the window. “Hi yourself.” He twists himself down and tips Deran's head up towards him for a quick kiss. “Sleep well?”

“Mmhmm. You?” 

“Yeah. I don't even remember getting here.” 

They lapse back into a comfortable silence, Adrian stroking his hands down over Deran's neck to his shoulder and back again just to feel all that warm skin under his hand, which normally has the wonderful side effect of melting Deran into a puddle of goo.

Not today, apparently. It's _extremely_ annoying that Deran still hasn't grown out of the habit of being energetic once he's awake in the mornings. Adrian would be quite happy to stay right where he is for the rest of the day, worshipping as much of Deran as he can without actually moving too much, but his fucking maniac of a partner is soon sitting up between his thighs with his hands bracketing Adrian's hips.

It’s odd how he suddenly finds at least part of him much more awake, and given the boner being pressed into his inner thigh, Deran is on the same path.

He grins, white teeth and bright eyes threatening to engulf Adrian. It's like being stared down by a particularly amorous wolf who considers him it's next meal, and Adrian's gotta say, he likes the feeling. He still feels wrecked, but he coordinates himself enough to wrap his legs around Deran's hips and scratch his nails down his back hard enough to make Deran shudder and jerk against him before Adrian gets a handful of that fucking _incredible_ ass.

When Deran leans in to brush his lips against Adrian's ear, he's expecting something corny maybe, but most likely it's going to be pure filth, and Adrian looks forward to it, shuddering in Deran's hands.

“So, where are these listings?” 

He's pretty sure his brain short-circuits at the weirdness of the question, and it takes him a moment to hunt for an answer that’ll make sense. “That … is not what I thought you'd say.” 

Deran laughs into his neck, but does shift to lay his full weight over Adrian, dick now pressing into his hip. “Mind out of the gutter, Dolan. I'm trying to have a sensible conversation here.”

“Can't it wait?” Now that he's here, Adrian is more than keen for an actual fuck, instead of a teenage grope-and-grind. He wonders idly where the fuck they left the lube last time, decides it isn't worth the misery of going without and resigns himself to separating from Deran long enough to retrieve it from under the bed.

“No, no, we’re adults, we’ve gotta have these discussions.” Christ, he’s such a shit, but Adrian loves him. 

“I’d prefer you to show your maturity another way right now.” Adrian bucks up hard then groans when Deran just pins his hands to the mattress with a filthy chuckle.

“Alright, fine. I’ll make you a deal, you show me these houses and then I'll fuck you. How's that sound?”

“It's not so much what I li - ohhhh, you asshole …” He trails off and loses his thought when Deran leans in to suck at side of his neck and makes his fucking brain melt until Adrian is able to get his hands back and throw him off. “Stop that, Jesus. And stop being so smug about it, you did this last night too!” 

“Pretty sure that was both of us.” Deran at least has stopped trying to destroy what brain cells Adrian has left by making them fight between sensible conversation and sex, but he can feel the toothy grin pressed into his skin. 

“Yeah. But, fuck, I can't think when you're like this and you know it.” He’s never stood a chance against the hurricane that is a horny Deran Cody, why would it be any different now? “And it's not so much ‘like’ when it comes to houses. It's more ‘what can we afford?’ And when it comes to my budget, the answer is ‘not much.’”

Deran rears back to glare at him, somehow managing to look confused and hurt and pissed off all at once. “What do you mean, ‘your’ budget? We've got plenty of cash.”

Ugh. Adrian knew not getting into the details was going to bite him in the ass. He sits up, shoving Deran back gently so that he can get out from under him and lean back against the headboard. 

“No, you do. I don’t have much to contribute financially, and you know it.” 

He warily watches Deran clench his fists and grind his jaw for a few long moments, where Adrian wonders what happens if Deran explodes. He’s held a good rein on his temper since they’ve gotten back together, but he thinks there’ll always be part of him that will be unsure about which way the guy is gonna jump.

To his relief, Deran just ends up sighing and dropping his head into his hands. They sit in silence, Deran staring at his legs and Adrian trying not to stare at Deran, but always coming back to him, until Deran starts to speak, soft and uncertain.

“The money might have been earned by me, the bar might have been bought by me, the house we get, cars, whatever. But what’s the point of all that shit if I can’t share it with you?”

Oh. 

That’s … very sweet, actually. Adrian occasionally forgets he’s in love with a man who has one hell of a marshmallow-y center. He swallows, his throat dry, and tries to think of something to say to that without actually proposing to Deran. 

“I get that. I mean, I’ve got nothing to share, really, but it’s all yours, man.” He stretches out his foot, gets it into Deran’s lap and prods at him gently until he blinks up at him, looking so exhausted it hurts. All the easiness of earlier is gone, and Adrian wishes they’d just spoken about this earlier so it’d have been over with. “But I don’t want to go into this without being as close to equal to you as I can be.”

Deran snorts. “Equal? Man, you’re so far ahead of me we’ll never catch up, and I’m not even trying to. This is just …” He trails off, his hands twisting palm-up for a moment before they land heavily over his knees. “It’s just me wanting to do something right for once.”

Fuck. “Hey.” Adrian slides down the bed so that he can slip behind Deran and wrap his arms around him to pull him back to his chest, pressing a kiss to the nape of his neck. “You do know that’s complete bullshit, right? I’m not your Mom, Deran. I don’t want you trying to make things up to me for the rest of our lives.”

“Besides, you’ve done plenty right. Okay,” He admits when Deran snorts again, the noise ugly. “Okay, you also made some colossal fuck-ups. But so have I. Everyone does sometimes. You’re not making them anymore, that’s the important thing.”

Deran hums, but at least it sounds agreeable enough. The silence that follows isn’t quite comfortable, but it’s bearable. Adrian can almost hear the gears grinding in Deran’s head, and he’s willing to give him the time he needs to figure out what he wants to say.

“It’s not that I owe you or anything. I just … I wanna be good to you. And we need a house, so let me get us one.” Deran turns his head enough that he can catch Adrian’s eyes, obviously sheepish in the face of what’s gone before them, but determined to do what he thinks is right this time. 

Adrian wonders, for a moment, if he can cope with not putting money into the initial purchase of the house. He thinks he can, if … “Can I at least pay evenly towards the ongoing expenses?” 

Deran nods. “Yeah. Of course, whatever you want.”

“Alright. Yeah, let’s do it. Just … nothing too crazy, alright?” He won’t let Deran move them into a place that neither of them are comfortable with, just to feed this desire of Deran’s to spoil him fucking rotten. 

“Refrigerator box it is, then.” Deran is smiling again, eyes twinkling even though there’s still an undercurrent of stress in the way he sits, stiff and unsure of every move he makes, but he loosens up more when Adrian grins at him.

“That’s a bit fancy. A shoebox might be a better choice for us.” 

Deran groans, managing to sound both amused and put-out while he kisses Adrian’s nose, his cheeks, then comes back to press a chaste kiss to his mouth. “You’re a pain in the ass, you know that?” 

“But I’m yours.” Adrian doesn’t let in any of the insecurity that saying those words would have brought him years ago, when he was unsure if Deran would ever admit how much they needed one another. 

“Fuck yeah, you’re mine, and I’m yours. And we’re getting a fucking house.” The joy of hearing Deran be so _happy_ to do this, to take that step forward … it thoroughly drowns any of the lingering worry that’s refused to leave Adrian’s system, and he lets himself be tackled to the mattress by his own personal hurricane again.

Later, they’ll look at the houses they’ve both chosen, and Adrian is sure there will be more disagreements and moments where neither of them can manage to communicate like functioning adults. But for now, he has Deran back in his arms, warm and loving and willing to move forward together, and Adrian can’t believe they’re getting a chance to do this.


End file.
